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Revolution Stories
These are the first hand stories of Portsmouth's Revolution Lou's Account The rebellion staggered for over a year before it came home to Portsmouth. Every so often, a merchant vessel would sail into harbor with news of an insurrection, an assassination attempt, but that was all. It seemed so far away, Grithnum. Another island, like ours I guess, except they had sock fruit. Lots of it, that’s what they did. I guess they didn’t like doing it anymore and they starting fighting back against the Dragonborn. No one paid it any mind until our troops were sent there. My buddy Ted went. He wasn’t real excited. Who wants to get shipped to some foreign land to fight people you don’t know, over a friggin’ fruit? I was shipped out to Grithnum; I made it back. I'll never forget the look on Ted's mom's face as the boys got off the boat, and her son didn't. She wasn’t the only one, the grief on the docks that days was tangible. Grief brewed into anger rather quickly. Armies on the move have big bellies. The Protectorate reinstated the food-taxes known as the Colonial Acts. No one I knew could remember the last time the Acts had been in place. We quadrupled the guard on the granary, inspected ships for contraband foodstuffs and we went out into the countryside for the grain tariff. This fisherman, Afferson, came in with a haul of sole, we took the required share, he couldn't make the loan payments on his boat, he lost the boat, I don't know what happened to him after. Afferson wasn’t the only one, too. Many of the smaller traders and even some of the smaller companies went under. Work became scarce, people became hungry and had lots of free time. Never a good sign for a government. Afferson became part of the “rebels”, he was around a lot, holding" underground" meetings, giving speeches, telling his story. It was real, he was believable, the guy lost everything and was more hurt than mad. His pain resonated in me and others I am sure. As time went on, Afferson became the litmus test of our society. His story started out asking how is this happening but changed over time to how can we stop this? His speeches became more inflammatory and the longer people were out of work, the more receptive they were to some of the more radical ideas. Complaining about the Colonial Acts stopped being the #1 priority. I was on duty the night of the old-market riot. I could see the fires from the deck of the Moon Runner. First the market burned, then the mob came to the docks. The mob was crazy, they just overran the boats, I think they were telling themselves they were looking for food (or tell themselves now that) but they just broke things. Anything. I killed a kid that night. I kicked the first looter off the deck, then I cut the dock ties they were crawling up, I didn’t even see the kid. I don’t know how he got on the Moon Runner, but he hit me and I just reacted. I drew my dagger and stabbed him. He went down. We got away but too many boats were ransacked. I don’t know how many people died. The official report made it 12, but it had to be more than that, and at least one was a hungry kid. The next day, a mob surrounded the granary. I could feel their desperation, their hunger, their hurt. It bit. The Dwarves kept the tunnel open, so we heard that the Elves had abandoned Lumbertown – there weren't any troops to keep them there, I guess. Apparently, some merchants had been arming people, and sussing out who amongst the garrison they could rely on. Theonia Featherlight led an attack on the armory, I didn't see what happened in the Governor's workplace, but he surrendered the city to the locals. Most of the dragonborn got on a boat and went home, though a few stayed. It took awhile to calm down, but it did, I guess. Information from other islands came trickling in, it seems the Dragonborn went back to Dragover Island. Trade is still limited and more dangerous now, but at least we can eat Tyvarus, Purple Dragon Knight What follows is a likely conversation one or more of you would have had with Tyvarus upon seeing he is now a Purple Dragon Knight (PDK). Your questions are boldfaced while Tyvarus' responses are italicized. "Prior to the revolution, were the PDKs associated with a particular church or organization?" The PDKs were organized by the State, and one of our tasks was to maintain order within the Protectorate. "I saw you fighting for the Dragonborne during the revolution. What is up with that?" You did. Part of our Oath is to be a loyal servant. Since the order was State run, we were Oath-bound to fight on the side of the Dragonborne. While this gives pleasure to only a few in the PDKs, we maintained our Oath. If that is going to be a problem for us moving forward, I can only hope to be a good companion to change your opinion. "Now the Dragonborne are gone, to whom do the PDKs "report"?" That is a good question. Right now, the Order is like a ship without a port to call home. My/our tasks are still to maintain order, protect the weak, and root out evil. I strive to protect you during our adventures and to be an honest voice in our dealings with others. This, I swear.